PLAY (2)
For some, pushing the limits means dropping out of a helicopter. Jamie Willeford gets a fresh line down a steep face with Points North Heli-Adventures on the southeastern side of the Chugach mountains out of Cordova in Alaska.

SHOP (6)
Colorado artist Sara Melzer's medium is India ink, and she applies the vivid colors to create personalized works of art. Any kind of snow or skate deck or skis can be transformed into a portrait, landscape or even a map of your favorite resort.

DISCOVER (8)
On a normal weekend morning in the summer, the popular, moderate hike to McCullough Gulch south of Breckenridge is packed with people who want to ogle the waterfalls and small lakes in the area. But if you take the lower trail in the winter, away from the scream of snowmobiles, you can sometimes have the entire route to yourself.

THRIVE (7)
The Colorado River winds past Lower Bass camp in the Grand Canyon. Peering over the edge into the mile-deep chasm will no doubt get your stomach turning, but to truly experience the jaw-dropping size of the canyon, you need to be at the bottom looking up. If you have the time and the resources, do it from a river raft or dory.

THRIVE (7)
Kuramathi Maldives. The Maldives is made up of atolls, which are coral islands that encircle lagoons. The climate is warm and tropical, and the hundreds of islands are no more than 6 feet above sea level, covering almost 56,000 square miles.

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It happens to everyone. You start off the ski season with high hopes for all of the things you are going to accomplish this year: skiing more vertical feet than your friends, gaining the confidence to huck that one cliff that always terrified you or finally skipping enough après beers to put that money toward some new gear. Here’s a list of suggestions to keep you on track and make the most of your time in the snow.